Returning from GenCon

Got home from GenCon late last night and have caught up on much needed rest.  Photos are up on facebook, although I've set it so everyone can view the photos (I hope.)  You can find them here: http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.2164576746465.2119112.1008025218  If the link doesn't work, let me know and I'll see if there's anything I can do.  (BTW, please do not ask to friend me on Facebook.  It's the one place I keep semi-private, just for friends and family (other than pictures).)

Lots of steampunk stuff this year, and lots of photos of steampunk stuff.  Also participated in the costume contest, which was a lot of fun, even if I didn't win.  Several hundred costumed attendees, including myself, also paraded through the convention center, which was a blast even with a blister on one foot. ;)

For the second year in a row, the Dresden LARP (Never Say Nevernever Again) was the highlight of my time there.  unfortunately, my husband had the camera for 7th Seas so I have no pics.  This year was even better than last year for reasons like:

• Bigger location in which to play
• More players
• really organized GMs
• I've actually read the Dresden books now
• An even cooler character than last year, which I didn't think possible.

 Last year I was Matthew Thompson, White Council warden and sibling (we were a little ambivalent on the gender) to Eric Thompson, former warden and now Red Court vampire duke.  The guy who played Eric was amazing, and we had a really good chemistry going, which led to all sorts of tension.

This year the GMs were apparently hoping I would show up because they had a character in mind for me.   So I was a little surprised when I opened my packet and found out I was playing Eric.  Why did they want me to play Eric so badly, particularly when Eric's player also returned this year?

Because Matthew is a ghost, and riding along in Eric's body.  Two character sheets, two sets of goals, two sets of knowledges about other characters, random flip-flops between personalities, and some really evil GMs made this one of the best gaming experiences I've ever had.  At one point I was actually physically fighting myself, Matthew trying to keep Eric from murdering another character, throwing myself around a closet.  The GM just looked down at me and laughed.  "This is why I hoped you would play this character."

So a couple people got to actually talk to Matthew, while most people either talked to Eric or to Matthew pretending to be Eric.  Occasionally someone got both of the latter, if a GM was torturous enough to switch me mid-conversation.

I didn't actually accomplish a whole lot, because I was too busy just juggling two personalities.  Eric and Matthew were also working against each other, so my lack of success is relative.  But it was just so darn cool dealing with all of the internal stuff, which at one point got so intense that I realized I personally was concerned about what one of my characters might do behind my back.